Digital reporter

Catch up with all the overnight news from Lancashire and across the country with our morning roundup.

BIKER DIES AFTER LOSTOCK HALL CRASH

Police are appealing for witnesses following the fatal collision. They were called at approximately 4.25pm by the ambulance service to reports of an incident on Leyland Road, in which a motorcyclist had collided with a van.

The motorcyclist, believed to be a man in his 30s, was sadly pronounced dead at the scene. He has not been named although his next of kin have been informed.

A heartbroken pensioner has revealed residents in her sheltered accommodation complex turned against her when a warden who plundered her savings was sacked.

The distraught 73-year-old, who has physical and mental difficulties, said she felt she had been "blamed" by others for what happened, that they had said "nasty" things, and she felt unable to take part in any group activities and trips to Blackpool anymore.

A great-grandfather who was told he has incurable cancer is determined to defy the odds – inspired by his own dad’s fight against the disease. Robert Farrington, 65, was told he has life-limiting stomach and pancreatic cancer earlier this year.

Waste bin collections in the Wigan area are set to move to a three-week rota as part of town hall plans to make huge savings as a result of budget cuts.

Council bosses hope the new system will boost recycling rates, saving £2m per year. We think we can do it with a minimum impact on the public by moving to collections every three weeks Lord Smith Residents are being offered a chance to have their say on the proposals as part of a borough-wide consultation launched this week.

HUNDREDS OF POLICE ACCUSED OF ABUSING POWER FOR SEXUAL GAIN, WATCHDOG REVEALS

Hundreds of police officers have been accused of abusing their power to sexually exploit people, including vulnerable victims of crime, a damning report has revealed.

Watchdogs laid bare the scale of the issue they described as the most serious form of corruption - and rebuked forces over their efforts to root out cases.

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) was asked by then home secretary Theresa May earlier this year to investigate the extent of the problem.

LABOUR UNDER FIRE AFTER MOST MPs BACK THERESA MAY'S BREXIT TIMETABLE

Labour has faced an onslaught from all sides after most of its MPs backed Theresa May's plans to trigger the process for quitting the European Union by the end of March on condition the PM reveals her strategy.

The Opposition was accused of handing the Conservatives a "blank cheque" for Brexit after 149 of its MPs, including leader Jeremy Corbyn, trooped through the voting lobbies with the Government.

Labour MPs who did not back the move were "named and shamed" on social media by the Tory Party for failing to "respect" the June 23 referendum result.

SAUDI ARABIA 'PLAYING PROXY WARS' IN MIDDLE EAST, SAYS BORIS JOHNSON

Boris Johnson has accused British ally Saudi Arabia of "playing proxy wars" in the Middle East.

Footage has emerged of the Foreign Secretary lumping the state in with Iran when he raised concerns about "puppeteering" in the region.

Mr Johnson was addressing a conference in Rome when he talked of politicians "twisting and abusing religion" to further their political aims.

BAN ON JUNK FOOD ADS AIMED AT CHILDREN EXTENDED TO ONLINE AND SOCIAL MEDIA

Junk food advertising is to be banned across all children's media - including online and social - in a landmark decision to help tackle childhood obesity.

The new rules will ban the advertising of food or drink high in fat, salt or sugar (HFSS) across all non-broadcast media targeted at under-16s from July next year, the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) said.

The changes bring media such as print, cinema and, crucially, online and social media, into line with television, where strict regulation prohibits the advertising of unhealthy food to children.

BRITISH MAN 'TERRIFIED' OVER SENTENCING IN DONALD TRUMP GUN INCIDENT

The mother of a British man who tried to grab a policeman's gun in an alleged attempt to kill Donald Trump said her son is "terrified" the US president-elect will demand a lengthy prison term.

Lynne Sandford's son Michael, 20, will be sentenced in the US on Tuesday after he admitted trying to snatch the officer's weapon during a rally for Mr Trump in Las Vegas in June.

Sandford, who has autism, allegedly told officers after his arrest that his plan was to shoot the tycoon.

SUFFERERS OF PSYCHOTIC ILLNESSES 'MAY HAVE TREATABLE IMMUNE DISORDER'

Some sufferers of psychotic illnesses like schizophrenia may have a treatable immune disorder, research suggests.

In a nationwide study, scientists at the University of Oxford found up to one in 11 cases of psychosis may involve a condition where antibodies attack the brain.

The team suggested that all patients displaying signs of psychosis for the first time should be screened for the antibodies to see if alternative treatments may be possible.

PATIENTS WAITING WEEK LONGER TO SEE CONSULTANT THAN FOUR YEARS AGO, EXPERTS WARN

Patients are waiting a week longer to see a consultant than four years ago, experts have warned, as they pointed to a "worrying" trend for increasing waiting times.

NHS waiting lists have grown in the past eight years, according to the study from the Nuffield Trust and the Health Foundation, from to 2.35 million people waiting in December 2008 to start treatment led by a consultant, to 3.7 million in September this year.

The Government has also abolished two targets relating to waiting times, and standards have unsurprisingly slipped against these markers, the report's authors said.

GIRAFFES IN DANGER OF EXTINCTION AS POPULATION PLUNGES BY UP TO 40%

Giraffes are being pushed towards extinction, with the global population plummeting by up to 40% over the past 30 years, conservationists have said.

The world's tallest land mammal has been classed as vulnerable to extinction on the latest global Red List of Threatened Species, following declines driven by habitat loss, illegal hunting and civil unrest in the African countries where it lives.

The assessment also revealed a worsening situation for African grey parrots, regularly kept as pets and with the ability to mimic human speech, which are now classed as endangered because of unsustainable trapping for trade and habitat loss.